Semidecating apparatus



y 1938. w c. 5. RICHARDSON 2,118,417

' SEMIDECATING APPARAiUS Filed March 9, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 5 S MJM fiorm y May 24, 1938.

c. G. RxcHARbsN SEMIDECATING APPARATUS- Fil d March 9, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented May 24, 1938 UNITED STATES.

SEMIDECATING APPARATUS Charles G. Richardson,

Springfield, 'Vt., assignor to Parks & Woolson Machine Company, Springfield, Vt., a corporation of Vermont Application March 9,

Claims.

This invention relates to cloth finishing machines of the type that are used for semi-decating fabrics by treating them to a dry steaming process to give softness of feel and surface luster to such fabrics, whether woven, knitted or felted.

According to usual practice such machines comprise essentially a revoluble perforated steaming drum on which the cloth is wound, together with a carrier apron which carries the cloth first around a presser roll before the apron and the cloth to be treated are coiled upon the steaming drum. When tubular fabrics, such as pieces of knitted fabric are treated, it is customary to employ a spreader frame arranged to be supported. and held in position to allow the tubular fabric to be drawn around it for spreading purposes before the fabric is delivered to the apron. As heretofore constructed, such machines have usually provided a horizontal table or supporting means for supporting the spreader frame in horizontal position, but such machines have not proved altogether satisfactory because of the tendency to unequal tension on opposite sides of the fabric surrounding the spreader. Moreover, such arrangement with the spreader frame in front of the presser roll tends to keep the operator at an inconvenient distance away from the steaming drum when attending the machine.

It is the object of the present invention to overcome these and other faults inherent in previous arrangements and provide a construction and arrangement that not only affords to the operator close and convenient access to the fabric as it is being wound on or unwound from the steaming drum, but also to provide a construction and arrangement that results in delivering to the feed apron such tubular fabric in a perfectly flat and smooth condition which it retains in the subsequent winding, steaming and unwinding of the fabric. With my present construction and arrangement the tubular fabric passes upward,

1935, Serial No. 10,261

trated a construction and arrangement embodying the principles of this invention, in which Fig. l is a side elevation showing so much of the steaming or decating machine as is necessary to understand this invention.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation showing a double machine for treating two pieces of tubular fabric simultaneously, a portion being broken away to permit showing on an adequate scale.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section showing the steaming drum, presser roll, apron and spreader in their operative relationship.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the mechanism forming the supporting cage for the spreaders, the upper pair of cage rolls being shown in central horizontal section.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the preferred construction of a spreader frame.

As will be understood by those skilled in the art for finishing purposes the cloth a: is wound around the steaming drum in conjunction with the feed or carrier apron 1/, which acts not only to carry and wind the cloth smoothly in coils around the drum but holds it firmly in place when the steam admitted to the interior of the drum escapes through the perforations in the peripheral wall and passes through the alternate layers of apron and cloth. After the fabric has been subjected to this dry steaming operation for a suflicient length of time, the steam is shut off and a vacuum pump is set in operation to draw air through the cloth, which has a quick cooling effect upon the fabric.

Instead of delivering the tubular fabric to be treated to the feed apron after it passes around a horizontally disposed spreader mounted on a horizontal support, the present invention suspends the spreader frame in a vertical position from a supporting cage, which does not interfere with the travel of the cloth to its points of contact with the apron above the upper end of the delivery frame. Moreover, the delivery frame is provided with an upward extension beyond its supporting cross bar which extends very close to the initial delivery point of the cloth upon the feed apron, so that there is no possibility of contraction of the tubular fabric as it leaves the spreader and engages therfeed apron.

The perforated steaming drum l is of the usual type and arranged in front of it on a horizontal slidable carrier frame 3 is a revoluble presser roll 2, which is normally pressed into contact with the periphery of the steaming roll by the tension of the feed apron y which passes from beneath, upward and over the presser roll, thence downward underneath and around the steaming drum. Somewhat below the level of the presser roll is arranged a horizontally disposed cage ill, whose details of construction will be presently described, which forms a suspension support for the spreader frame [2. This spreader frame is here shown as comprising a skeleton construction consisting of a peripheral wire, whose bottom receiving end is provided with corners of relatively large curvature, shown at i2", and whose upper corners, as shown at I2 are of very small curvature.

For the purpose of loosely suspending the spreader there is provided a cross bar 13, preferably of tubular construction, whose end portions are flattened and provided with shallow notches for the reception of the sides of the wire frame to which the cross bar is soldered, or otherwise secured, so as to present no obstruction'to the travel of the tubular fabric around the frame. 7

The cage H3 in which the spreader is suspended comprises four rolls'arranged in upper and lower horizontal pairs. The two back rolls and the lower front roll Hi are of tubular form and are mounted upon horizontal supporting rods l5 by means of ball bearing races i6 interposed between the interior supporting rod or girt and the end portions of the roll.

The upper front roll I8 is mounted to provide quick detachment in order that it may be readily removed for insertion of the spreader frame and replaced to retain it in proper position to guide and spread the tubular fabric. As shown in Fig. 4,, the fixed supporting brackets II, which carry the ends of the girts 15, are provided with sockets at their forward ends for supporting a horizontal pin l9, whose outer end Is is enlarged and bored to form'a spring retaining chamber slotted on one side for the reception of a telescoping gudgeon which projects into the interior of the ball race 2| inserted in the end of the roller [8, said gudgeon 26 being provided with a retaining pin projecting into the slot of the member I9 A similar ball race 2| at the other end of the roller engages the projecting end of a stationary gudgeon 22, so that the roll I8 is very easily revolved upon its axis and can be instantly removed by retracting the gudgeon 20 to permit the withdrawal of the roller from its supporting, gudgeons or pins. This four-roll support serves not only as a suspension means for suspending the spreader frame downward, but equally prevents any upward or tilting displacement of the spreader frame.

As the sides of the spreader frame are continued upward beyond the cross bar to the point where the tubular fabric travelling over it meets the feed apron, it will be seen that the spreader functions to maintain the fabric in its flattened spread and unwrinkled condition until the fabric actually is delivered upon the feed apron.

A weighted roller at 4, resting in slotted bearings, serves to keep the tubular fabric pressed against the apron and keeps it smooth.

An elongated slotted bearing member 5 extending upward from each side frame serves as a guiding support for the winding mandrel upon which the treated fabric is wound when the machine is reversed for the purpose of rewinding the apron upon the apron roll 6, as both the apron and the cloth unwind from the steaming drum I.

The upward extensions of the spreader frame above the cross bar are preferably joined together by the top cross wire to give additional stiffness, but this is not essential to allow the spreading sides to perform their function of maintaining the tubular fabric in stretched or spread condition until it is delivered to the feed apron.

Directly below the spreader is located a guide roll 8, whose ends are supported in side frames 9, which delivers the tubular fabric in flat condition to the lower or receiving end of the spreader.

To prevent lateral displacement of the suspended spreader there is located a pair of opposed guide rolls adjustably mounted to lightly engage the upwardly moving side edges of the tubu- Wlar fabric as it travels along the sides of the spreader.

These rollers are carried by brackets 26 adjustably secured to a horizontal cross bar 21 supported by the side frames 9.

The path of travel of the strips of tubular fabric is indicated by dotted lines on either side of the spreader frame l2 in Fig. 2.

What I claim is:

1. In a cloth finishing machine of the type de scribed the combination of a vertical spreader frame provided with a horizontal cross bar intermediate its upper and lower ends for suspending the spreader inside an upwardly travelling tubular fabric, a horizontal support for said spreader comprising upper and lower pairs of spreaders supporting and guiding rollers spaced apart to form means below and above the spreader crossbar for preventing vertical or tilting movements when engaging said cross bar through the medium of the interposed tubular fabric surrounding said spreader.

2. In a cloth finishing machine the combination of a spreader suspended in a vertical plane and dimensioned to penetrate and stretch out in flattened form a piece of tubular fabric, the spreader being provided with a cross member of greater thickness than the remainder of the spreader and forming means for suspending the spreader when enveloped in a tubular fabric, means above the top of the spreader for drawing said fabric upward over the spreader from bottom to top, and means comprising upper and lower pairs of rollers disposed on opposite sides of the spreader to engage and loosely support said cross suspendingmember and prevent tilting and vertical movement of the spreader up or down, while permitting the tubular fabric to pass around the spreader and between the upper and lower pair of rolls for delivery to a conveyor.

3. In a cloth finishing machine the combination of a vertically suspended spreader formed and dimensioned when enveloped in a tubular piece of fabric to stretch the same in flattened form and having a suspending cross member intermediate of its top and bottom portions and of greater thickness than the remainder of the spreader, fabric guiding means arranged beneath the lower end of the spreader to guide a tubular fabric in flattened condition upward over the lower end of the spreader, revoluble suspension means affording lateral and vertical support for the spreader above and below the cross member when the spreader is enveloped in the moving tubular fabric, and a feed apron traveling through a path directly abovethe spreader in close proximity to the upper portion of the spreader.

4. In a cloth finishing machine for treating tubular fabric the combination with a spreader provided with means for suspending it in a vertical plane while enveloped in the travelling tubular fabric, and supporting means therefor embracing upper and lower pairs of spaced rollers arranged to form supporting means. on opposite sides of the spreader and above and below said suspension member, one of said rollers being mounted on a quick detachable support for permitting its ready removal and replacement. 7

5. In a machine for finishing tubular fabrics, the combination with a vertical suspended spreader frame having a suspension cross-bar intermediate its top and bottom of greater thickness than the spreader frame, a pair of suspen- 10 sion rollers arranged on opposite sides of the spreader below the cross-bar, an upper pair of rollers arranged on opposite sides of the spreader above the cross-bar, the rollers of each pair being spaced apart enough to receive between them the spreader frame when enveloped in the tubular fabric but nearer together than the thickness of the cross-bar, and means above the spreader top for drawing the fabric upward between the pairs of rolls and the spreader.

CHARLES G. RICHARDSON. 

